How to Measure the Intensity of an Abdominal Workout

Measuring the intensity of your ab workout is important because you need to constantly increase your intensity as you get stronger to avoid plateaus in your muscle and strength gains. It can also keep you from undertraining or overtraining so you can gain muscle at your most effective pace. You can use the amount of weight you lift, a heart rate monitor, your perceived exertion level and the talk test to monitor your intensity.

Instructions

    • 1

      Measure your ab workout intensity using the amount of weight you use for free weight and machine weight ab exercises. Keep track of the amount of weight you use with a constant number of sets and reps for different exercises. According to the American Council on Exercise, an ideal amount of weight to lift is an amount that fatigues after doing eight to 12 reps. You shouldn't be able to lift the weight with correct form and slow control after 12 reps. If you can, move up to a heavier weight.

    • 2

      Wear a heart rate monitor for cardio ab workouts or a vigorous ab strength-training workout. A higher heart rate indicates more exertion and calorie expenditure. Calculate your maximum heart rate by subtracting your age from 220. Then calculate your intensity zones by multiplying the following percentages by your maximum heart rate. Your light exercise intensity zone is within 40 to 50 percent of your maximum heart rate. Moderate activity is in the cardio zone between 50 and 70 percent, and vigorous activity is done at 70 to 85 percent.

    • 3

      Pay attention to how you feel to gauge intensity. Light exercise feels easy and hardly changes your breathing at all. Moderately intense exercise feels a little bit hard -- you usually break a sweat after 10 minutes and your breath is faster but not depleted. Vigorous activity feels challenging, usually both physically and mentally. Your breathing is fast and you definitely break a sweat doing a vigorous workout. If you're short of breath or you're in pain, you may be overexerting yourself at too high of an intensity level. The amount of burning sensation or discomfort you feel in your abdominal muscles can also help you measure your intensity.

    • 4

      Do the talk test while you exercise. When doing light and moderate exercise, you usually can carry on a conversation but are too active to be able to sing. Doing vigorous exercise, you can't say more than a few words at a time without taking a breath. Reciting a mantra or something you're familiar with, like the Pledge of Allegiance, is an effective test in measuring your intensity level.